Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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CHICAGO --

The U.S. Department of Labor today announced settlements with three Chicago area employers resulting in payments of nearly $92,000 for 58 low-wage workers. The agreements follow investigations by the department’s Wage and Hour Division that uncovered violations of the overtime pay and minimum wage provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

In separate consent judgments filed in U.S. District Court, Chicago, seven workers at the U.S.A. #1 Family Restaurant, Markham, Ill., will share $15,423.28 in back wages and interest as a result of minimum wage and overtime pay violations, and 13 workers at Jonathan’s Restaurant, Lombard, Ill., will share $25,000 as a result of overtime pay violations of the FLSA. Recovery of back wages in both cases followed filing of formal complaints in federal district court, and the consent judgments resolved those complaints.

The Labor Department also announced an agreement with Uncle Bub’s Restaurant, Westmont, Ill., to pay $41,318.40 in back wages owed 31 workers as a result of overtime pay violations.

“Each of these cases involves low-wage workers who put in long hours on the job and deserve to be paid what the law demands,” said District Director Thomas A. Gauza of the Labor Department’s Chicago Wage and Hour Division district office. “Further, each of these companies has assured us they will comply with the wage and hour requirements of the FLSA in the future. We have no reason to doubt their assurances, but we will not hesitate to take further action if follow-up investigations indicate non-compliance.”

Gauza then noted that in February 2005 the department obtained contempt findings against Great China Buffet Corp., Niles, Ill., and the restaurant business’ president Cheng Fei Zheng, after that company violated the FLSA despite being ordered in federal district court to comply with the law. The restaurant also paid $10,080.42 in back wages and interest to seven workers, and a $2,000 compensatory fine to purge itself of the contempt finding.

The FLSA requires covered employees to be paid the minimum wage for all hours worked and time and one-half their regular rate of pay for hours worked over 40 per week. Employers must also maintain accurate time and payroll records. The Wage and Hour Division recovered nearly $200 million in back wages in fiscal year 2004 for more than 288,000 workers. For more information about the FLSA, call the Department of Labor’s toll-free help line at 1-866-4USWAGE (1-866-487-9243). Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at (202) 693-7828 or TTY (202) 693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America’s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/compliance.